


skepticism is the beginning of faith

by foreverfangirlwrites



Series: How We Could Have Met [22]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: APPLE CIDER, Alternate Universe, Annabeth is wise, Basically a fall hallmark story, Character Growth, Costumes, F/M, Fluff, Kinda, also feat. Leo and Calypso, feat. Halloween, halloween party, its cute, meet cute, percy is sketpic boi, philosophical
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-28
Updated: 2020-10-28
Packaged: 2021-03-08 20:28:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,008
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27252691
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/foreverfangirlwrites/pseuds/foreverfangirlwrites
Summary: Percy doesn’t believe in soulmates. The same way some people don’t believe in ghosts, or Bigfoot, Percy doesn’t believe in this forever love thing. Ghosts, seem more likely.He’s heard all the promises with loving stares and holding hands, and he’s also seen the way the promises break and stares cut and hands fall limply to the side.Sure, maybe some people find love. Leo, for one, seems to think he has, unable to keep a smile off his face lately. But then again, Leo also thinks lighting things on fire is a viable solution.
Relationships: Annabeth Chase/Percy Jackson
Series: How We Could Have Met [22]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1256003
Comments: 6
Kudos: 81





	skepticism is the beginning of faith

Percy doesn’t believe in _soulmates_. The same way some people don’t believe in ghosts, or Bigfoot, Percy doesn’t believe in this forever love thing. Ghosts, seem more likely.

He’s heard all the promises with loving stares and holding hands, and he’s also seen the way the promises break and stares cut and hands fall limply to the side.

His mother tells him, with worried eyes, that just because it didn’t work for her, that his dad left, doesn’t mean that love doesn’t exist. He shrugs and thinks of a girl with red hair, long gone, who had told him the same thing.

Sure, maybe some people find love. Leo, for one, seems to think he has, unable to keep a smile off his face lately. But then again, Leo also thinks lighting things on fire is a viable solution.

So he doesn’t put too much stock in that.

But he gives in because there’s food involved, and he can’t help the slight bit of curiosity that wonders who the hell is this girl who’s managed to turn Leo into a whipped puppy.

Calypso is very nice, with long caramel hair and a smile just as sweet.

“I invited one of my friends so you wouldn’t be alone,” she tells him with that sweet smile. “She’s single,” she adds, throwing him a wink. But before he can respond and say he’s _not_ interested, Leo cuts in.

“You’re too nice, Cali. Percy is a skeptic.”

Her pretty face morphs into a frown. “Skeptic?”

“Of love.”

“How can someone be skeptical of love?”

Everyone turns towards the new voice where a girl with curly blonde hair is standing at the edge of their table.

“Annabeth!” Calypso cheers, standing up to offer a hug and Percy sulks back as the introductions happen.

“And this is Percy, the skeptic,” Leo introduces. Percy wishes he hadn’t said yes to this dinner.

Annabeth shakes her head with a smile that kinda pisses him off. “I don’t believe it.”

“Yeah, well, believe it princess.”

The words come out harsher than he had intended, and Leo elbows him in the side with a frown. But he doesn’t need Leo to immediately feel bad about what he said. But before he can apologize, Annabeth flashes him another big smile.

“It’s okay. After all, skepticism is the beginning of faith.”

-.-

The words and the curly blonde hair don’t leave his thoughts, annoyingly enough. And he can recognize the irony in the way she’s snuck into his mind and settled there, making him think, question, but mostly reaffirm his belief that love isn’t worth it.

But just the fact that he has a belief solidifies her words and he’s driving himself insane, going round in circles with this. So when Leo asks him if he wants to come with, he agrees before really knowing what he’s agreeing to.

They pull on their jackets and walk towards the park where bales of hay have been set up as a pop-up pumpkin patch, complete with apple cider and pumpkins.

He realizes too late that they’re not there alone.

Calypso’s caramel hair pops into view, followed shortly by—

Yep, that curly blonde head that he hasn’t been able to vanquish from his mind no matter how hard he tries. A scowl settles on his face before the two even arrive.

“Is he always, this scowl-y?” Annabeth asks Leo as they walk up.

Leo shrugs. “Actually…lately, yeah.”

At that, Percy scowls even more, this time aiming it towards Leo, who pretends not to see it as he pulls Calypso in for a hug.

“Who’s up for some apple cider?” Calypso asks when they separate, intertwining her fingers with Leo’s.

The general consensus is yes, and they walk towards the stall, Percy trailing a step behind. (He swears he’s not usually like this but something about Annabeth just--)

Speaking off, his solace is broken when she falls back in step with him.

“Why don’t you like me?” she asks, in a shockingly casual tone. The forwardness of the question surprises him.

“I don’t not like you!” He rushes to defend.

She raises an eyebrow.

“I mean it. I’m sorry I’ve been an ass. It’s just me, not you.” Everything coming out of his mouth sounds dumber by the second, so he shuts it before he makes an even bigger fool of himself.

Annabeth glances sideways at him as they stop in line for the apple cider. “Alright then, what’s going on with you?”

He curses internally, wishing nothing more than to be out of this conversation. He shrugs his shoulders in lieu of answering.

“Wanna know what I think?” she continues, as if she expected him to not answer. He doesn’t really, but he has a feeling he’s going to find out anyway.

“I think… you’ve lost something.”

What the fuck?

He stares at her for a good five seconds before she bends down and picks something up.

“Your card,” she says handing him his credit card that must have slipped out of his wallet. He doesn’t even remember pulling out his wallet. But then he turns towards forward and realizes they’re at the front where a lady is waiting their order.

Annabeth turns away from him and proceeds to place her order, leaving Percy even more confused.

This girl is insane.

And what the fuck was she insinuating when she said that he lost something? He doesn’t know, but it’s probably not his credit card, and he’s offended on the principal of the thing.

They meet up with Leo and Calypso who have already decided to wander through the pumpkins, and once again, Percy trails behind.

He’s not sure if he’s relieved or disappointed when Annabeth doesn’t hang back with him.

-.-

“I haven’t lost anything.”

Leo looks up from his phone. “Good to know, dude.”

Percy stares at the clean living room before him where he’s just made his announcement. He doesn’t know why he said it out loud, he just _felt_ like he had to. And though the words didn’t really—

Hang on, why was everything so clean?

“Um, Leo, did you clean?”

Leo looks up again, raising an eyebrow. “Yeah, Calypso’s coming over, remember?”

He vaguely recalls Leo asking/letting him know about this visit but to be fair, he’d been playing Phasmophobia at the time, so it’s not like he was paying attention.

“Right.”

He’s about to retreat into his room (he doesn’t need to be there for any kissing that might occur) when the doorbell rings and Leo jumps up to answer it.

“Hey babe!” he says with a wide smile. And just before Percy can dart out of view, Calypso’s eyes meet his.

“Hey, and hey Percy!”

He offers a small wave, inching back slowly, when another person pops into view.

He knows for a fact that he would have remembered if Annabeth had been mentioned in any previous conversations leading up to this moment.

“Hey guys!” Annabeth says with a smile, through her eyes are trained on his and she’s already got an eyebrow raised.

“We brought some scary movies!” Calypso holds out some DVDs. “The ones that aren’t on Netflix.”

He could leave. He probably should leave. But Annabeth’s grey eyes are fixed on him and her smile holds a challenge that’s been there from the first day.

Sighing, he plops down on the couch. Annabeth, unsurprisingly, plops down next to him.

“How’s it going?”

“Fine,” he mutters back.

She frowns at his tone. “Doesn’t sound like it. Is it still a you thing or have you started not liking me?”

Oh god, not this again. He’s about to open his mouth when he catches the twinkle in her eyes.

That sneaky little--

He sticks out his tongue in favor of answering and she just laughs as Leo brings in a big bowl of popcorn. It’s the best conversation he’s had with her yet.

The group begins to discuss the selection of the movie and he zones out, strangely focusing on a stray curl on Annabeth’s head.

“What do you think?” she asks, turning towards him and snapping him out of it.

“I don’t care.”

“And that’s your problem,” she replies in a low enough voice that only he can hear. His eyes shoot up to meet hers and there’s a soft look on her face for a second before she turns back towards the other two.

 _Every_ time he meets this girl, she says some shit that fucks him up.

He’s not even aware of the movie starting till the sound kicks up, completely lost in figuring out what the hell she meant by that.

They get through Hocus Pocus before Leo and Calypso retreat to the kitchen to get more snacks (and probably kiss), leaving Annabeth and Percy on the couch.

“What a classic. Halloween Town next?” she asks, getting up to stretch.

“What did you mean?”

He blurts it out before he can stop himself and she pauses mid-stretch at the words. “What do you mean, ‘what do I mean?’”

Well, he’s dug this hole now. He pushes on. “What did you mean when you said, that’s my problem?”

Annabeth is quiet for a moment, her arms falling back to her sides. She sits back down, turning her body to face him.

“Well you said you don’t care,” she starts slowly. “I think you should care.”

And before he can open his mouth in outrage that, excuse her, he _does_ care, about a lot of things actually, she continues.

“In life you can either extend an open hand or curl it into a fist. But to extend means to open your heart to possibilities you might not believe in.”

And with that she gets up to go to the kitchen.

Who is this girl spewing quotable knowledge like Dumbledore, and what Disney movie did she come from?

-.-

Annabeth has clawed her way into his life, his mind. And despite how much he wants to brush off her words as random bullshit, they stick to him like glue on a sandwich, soaking into the bread that is his brain.

So maybe that wasn’t the best metaphor.

Either way, he can’t help but wonder if maybe, just _maybe_ , she’s right.

His ego refuses to believe it, but there’s a hole somewhere that he’s started feeling the presence of more and more. But either way, it’s a moot point, because even if she is right, what the _fuck_ can he do about it?

He stares into the mirror and wonders if The Flash has ever felt this way. Probably not. If he _was_ actually the fastest man alive, he’d probably feel great.

Unlike now, with how uncomfortable the leather of the costume feels against his skin. But hey, he’s making an effort, because unlike a certain blonde would like to believe, he _does_ care about Halloween.

Leo walks into the living room five minutes later dressed as sailor, complete with the hat. Percy wonders what Calypso is going to be to complete the couples’ costume.

Mermaid.

As it turns out, as soon as they arrive at the party, clad in a shimmery green dress, Calypso is a mermaid. Leo pulls her in for a kiss and Percy tries not to be too obvious in looking around for that blonde head of hair.

For some reason, he expected Annabeth to be here.

Before Calypso can say a proper hello, she and Leo are swept away into the crowd. Instead of attempting to follow them, he makes his way over to the kitchen.

Thankfully, there’s some drinks, and he grabs a beer from the open cooler, plopping down on the seat by the breakfast bar.

Taking a sip, he resigns himself to his seat, knowing it’ll be a while before Leo finds him again. For the first time, he’s actually kinda upset about it. He’s not the most extroverted person, but given that all his social interactions lately had featured some form of conversation with Annabeth, he feels a bit…lonely.

“You’re really pulling off the leather,” a voice says by his ear, and he turns to see Catwoman standing there. He takes a moment to appraise her costume, which is extremely well done with a cowl and everything.

“Thanks, you are too,” he finds himself replying.

Maybe it’s because he’s happy that someone recognized the effort he put into his costume, maybe it’s that hers is really good too, or maybe he’s missing some company and being The Flash is easier than being Percy, but he’s open to the conversation.

“Aren’t you a charmer,” the girl replies, training her dark eyes on him.

“I try.” He shoots her a smile. “Though it’s easy to compliment a pretty girl.”

Her eyes widen in surprise and he feels proud that even though he hasn’t flirted in forever, he’s still got it.

“Well, Flash, I’m guessing you don’t have an Iris?”

He leans back, taking another sip of his beer. “Nope.”

“Are you looking for one?”

The words send a jolt through him. Is he? Is that why he’s flirting? Or is it just for fun?

“Depends,” he replies, trying to get his thoughts together. “You got a Batman?”

It’s smooth enough to catch her off guard again and he breathes a sigh of relief, taking another gulp of beer and deciding to say fuck it. Let’s see where this goes.

Extend an open hand, that’s what Annabeth had said right?

But the thought of her immediately makes him wish that she was here right now, instead of whoever this other girl is. (Not that she isn’t attractive—from what he can make of her face structure and body covered in black leather, she’s _really_ attractive).

But Annabeth…she’s just—

Wait. Did he just wish that he was flirting with Annabeth?

His internal crisis is cut short by the girl responding. “Nope, but I’m on the lookout.”

“Good,” he replies instinctively, still reeling from his realization.

She moves closer, her black lips curled into a smile and oh god, all of a sudden, he is not prepared for more flirting.

A flash of yellow passes by his peripherals and he snaps his head to see if that’s the golden blonde hair of a certain someone who’s invaded more than just his mind, it seems. But it’s a wig from a Rapunzel costume and he turns back, disappointed.

“Looking for someone?” Catwoman asks, leaning back.

He shakes his head. “Just thought I saw a friend.”

“Some friend, you turned so quickly I thought you’d snap your neck.”

There’s a hint of…something in her tone and he hopes that the mask is hiding his blush.

“She’s a good friend.”

“She?”

He takes it all back. He sucks at flirting. Rule one of flirting: don’t talk about another girl in front of the girl you’re flirting with. And he broke it.

“Yeah, she’s…” he hesitates, but a bigger part of him just wants to keep going even though he knows he shouldn’t. “She’s got me fucked up,” he continues truthfully.

“What?”

“Yeah, she just, _says_ shit you know.” Now that he’s started, he can’t stop. “Like when she first met me she had the audacity to insinuate I was wrong. And then she said that I have a problem and I’ve lost something, and I need to be more open. Like who does that to someone you don’t even know that well?”

He doesn’t give Catwoman time to answer. “And you know what? Everything she said has taken over my mind, driving me crazy and the worst of all, I think she might be right!”

He throws his hands up in the air. “And I can’t just fix it like a broken toy, it’s who I am as a person, you know? And she just, I don’t know, there’s something about her that drives me crazy and yet I honestly wish she was standing here right now.”

And that’s when he realizes that he’s being a _complete_ ass to this girl. Fuck. Again.

“Not that you aren’t great!” he rushes to save. “Like you’re great, I mean,” he looks her over quickly, “you’re _amazing_.” God, now he sounds like a complete creep.

“I just meant like this girl is—”

He’s cut off by her lips on his, and all of a sudden she’s sitting on his lap. It catches him so off guard that he doesn’t know how to respond for a second before he pulls away.

Catwoman takes the opportunity to push the cowl off his head, granting her better access to his lips. She digs her fingers into his hair and he can taste the alcohol on her lips.

Is she drunk?

But she seems all too sober when she leans in to look him in the eyes.

“You…um, you kissed—”

She cuts him off again. “You were talking too much.”

He shuts up.

Her lips curve into a smile. “And it seems like, you did just fix it.”

The words hit him in a way that only one person can. So, slightly shaking, he extends his hand to pull down her mask.

A stray golden blonde curl springs loose and his heart is beating louder than ever before.

Annabeth places a hand on his chest, right next to his heart and he has no doubt she can feel his heartbeat quicken.

“And looks like you found it.”

For the first time since he’s met her, Annabeth’s words don’t knock him away in confusion. They feel just right.

He clenches his fist in her hair and draws her in for a proper kiss.

-.-

“It’s cold,” Annabeth whines, snuggling closer to him on the couch. They’re having another movie night and Leo and Calypso have already piled the floor high with all the blankets, leaving just one for Percy and Annabeth.

“Aren’t you cold?” she asks, turning to him, attempting to dig herself deeper by his side.

And Percy isn’t the kind of guy to say something cliché like, “I’m always warm when I’m with you.”

Except apparently, he is.

**Author's Note:**

> And there you have it? What did you think? An October themed finding your heart and believing in love saga featuring a Disney Channel kiss that I really did not mean to have go on this long. Honestly, it was supposed to be a drabble and it turned into a 3k monster but here we are. Hope you guys liked this Halloween Hallmark movie turned fic lol
> 
> But I will say that the concept of extending an open hand is important. In life you have the choice to close in yourself or reach out into the world and as Percy learns it’s much better to extend that open hand, to open your heart and feel what the world has to offer. 
> 
> Hope you guys enjoyed this! Please Comment! I’d love to hear your thoughts!
> 
> And as always, thanks for reading!
> 
> See ya! :)


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